Is My Website Down?

A simple & quick check

Websites can go down or appear to be down for a number of reasons.

Please note it could be down for you but not for everyone else.

The first step: follow this link and check to see if it is down for everyone or just for you.

If you discover it is down just for you, do the following:

• Stay calm.
• Check it on a different network, such as using mobile data on your phone; turn off Wi-Fi first.
• Re-start your router.
• Re-start your device.
• Try using a VPN.
• Perform a full browser refresh by holding down Ctrl + Alt both together while left-clicking your browser refresh button.
• Clear your browser's cache. This is possible without deleting the history by selecting the correct setting.
• Perform a router flush. The instructions are here.
• If any of the above does not remedy the situation, contact your ISP.

The chances are it will come back in time. If it is down just for you, this is not an issue with your Web Hosting Provider.

Common reasons a website seems down just for you

• Your IP address becomes blocked. *
• Your IP address has been blacklisted.
• Interference from a firewall.
• Interference from an anti-virus programme.
• Interference from a VPN.
• Browser issues.
• Server crashed.
• Server maintenance in progress.
• Exceptionally heavy traffic.
• * If you have an email address on certain servers and an incorrect password has been entered multiple times, it is possible your I.P. address could become blocked. This is an important security feature to help keep out hackers. Check your email using Webmail or a VPN, or if using a phone, turn off your Wi-Fi and connect using Mobile Data. If performing the latter does not work, contact your Server Provider or Website Manager with your I.P. address to have it unblocked.

Find your I.P. address here

You will see two versions: IPv4 & IPv6. Either can usually be used; however, start with the former version.

If you discover the website is down for everyone, do the following:

• Stay calm; shouting at someone will not help in having it fixed more quickly!
• If you have a managed website, the website manager will know if it is down before you do, as they should have a tracking system on all sites they manage, and we will receive several notifications if a site is down very soon after the outage started. They should take immediate action to get the situation remedied.
• IIf you do not have a managed website, contact your Service Provider. If you have an email address associated with your domain name, it probably won't work either, so it may be best to ring them.

Common reasons websites appear down for everyone

• Expired domain name / hosting.
• Malicious attacks.
• Network issues.
• Errors in using CMS, such as accidentally deleting a page.
• Error in web coding.
• Server crashed.
• Server maintenance in progress.
• Exceptionally heavy traffic.
• A third-party CDN has gone offline, most unusual but possible.

No Home or Office Internet?

Use Your Phone As A Hotspot

If you can't access any website because you have discovered an Internet connection problem and you need to use your computer and not your phone for browsing, you can use your phone as a hotspot to connect your computer.

You will need sufficient mobile data to do this, and costs may apply.

The instructions to do this are here